Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani

Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani (12 December 1880-17 November 1976) was a founder of the Awami League of Bangladesh and a key leader of what became known as "Islamic socialism".

Biography
Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani was born on 12 December 1880 in Sirajganj, Bangladesh to a Sunni Muslim family of Bengalis, and he joined the Khilafat Movement to protest against the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire. In 1947, he took part in the Sylhet Referendum and voted to join Pakistan, and he helped in founding the socialist Awami League. Bhashani became known as a selfless man popular with the peasants and was nicknamed "the Red Maulana" for his views on Islamic socialism. Bhashani opposed Pakistan's relations with the United States, as he was pro-Eastern Bloc and anti-capitalist, while he supported close relations with China under Yahya Khan. However, he took part in the 1969 protests that forced Khan to step down from power, and from 1973 to 1975 he served as a member of parliament of an independent Bangladesh after the Bangladesh Liberation War resulted in freedom for the Bengalis.